SAN JUAN -- To help
meet the anticipated effects of climate change, a $5-per-head
surcharge on all air travelers to the Caribbean region has been
proposed by Ulric Trotz, science advisor to the Caricom Climate
Change Centre in Belize.
Trotz addressed
delegates to the 30th annual Caribbean Tourism Conference here
during a session on the effects of global climate change.
The funds would go
towards helping adapt island infrastructures meet the anticipated
effects of climate change, which may include greater coastal
flooding, stronger hurricanes and the deterioration of coral
reefs.
"The Caribbean
attracts more than 12 million visitors per year," Trotz said. "At
$5 per head, this can raise more than $60 million annually which
would be put in a fund to assist islands in adaptation."
Other action steps
include: buildings designed to withstand Category 4 hurricanes;
moving developments further away from coastlines; and incentives
for greater energy conservations, such as tax breaks for solar
panel usage.
"I would like to
suggest that the Caribbean make itself the first carbon neutral
destination," Trotz said. "This will be both a unique way of
marketing the region and an effective method of branding as the
awareness of climate change and its impact increases."
To
contact reporter Gay Nagle Myers, send e-mail to [email protected].